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brennan does for justification tomorrow. sam? >> let me add one point to that which is the other thing the administration has done is well, we've been talking about this process, attorney general eric holder has been talking about this process. john brennan has been talking about this process publicly. we have outlined it. and i think there is a role for congress to play. and i would add even for the american public to play to a certain extent in judging what kind of legal justifications the administration is using. i understand the administration doesn't want to set a bad precedent here, but these are weighty matters. >> colonel, what kind of intel are we getting on the ground? i mean we have to be sure that we're not killing innocent people here. >> well, i'm going to say having spent a lot of time in combat, i can tell you any time that we have any combat operation, you're going to have innocent people killed. there is always going to be collateral damage. and indeed in the second world war, we went out of our way to kill civi
brennan does for justification tomorrow. sam? >> let me add one point to that which is the other thing the administration has done is well, we've been talking about this process, attorney general eric holder has been talking about this process. john brennan has been talking about this process publicly. we have outlined it. and i think there is a role for congress to play. and i would add even for the american public to play to a certain extent in judging what kind of legal justifications...
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brennan. this should be questions right out of the chute, shouldn't it? >> yes. this is a major component of the president's war on terror. it's a major component of his foreign policy. and listen, there is a difference between operational oversight, which is what congressman rogers was stressing in the interview with andrea mitchell, and legal oversight. and up until this point we really haven't seen any legal justification that the administration has presented for why it can target american civilians abroad if it has determined an imminent threat to the homeland. >> well, it was written today in the "new yorker" that the justification that they're using is a comparison to military troops going into cambodia in vietnam. that's how the nixon aw incredie changes. ri and i think there is a role for congress to play. and i would add even for the american public to play to a certain extent in judging what kind of legal justifications the administration is using. i understand the administration doesn't want to set a bad precedent here, but these are weighty matters. >
brennan. this should be questions right out of the chute, shouldn't it? >> yes. this is a major component of the president's war on terror. it's a major component of his foreign policy. and listen, there is a difference between operational oversight, which is what congressman rogers was stressing in the interview with andrea mitchell, and legal oversight. and up until this point we really haven't seen any legal justification that the administration has presented for why it can target...
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just the tokyo rose type. >> you can have the highest regard with president obama and john brennan. you can realize they're only going to be there for three more years. this is the way warfare is going to be. this is a weapon. this is a flexible, very useful, valuable weapon. >> what's wrong with sticking the judgment of people around obama and not trusting the judgment of the value of people around dick cheney? >> if you give the power to this president, then you can expect the next president to have similar powers. i commend everybody with the yugs of drones and attacking not american. >> what's the difference between an american drone attack and a seal attack? are there less collateral damage? >> if you read the new york times this morning, it talks about instances. >> so what do you do? >> if you come -- what do you do? ? >> well, perhaps, in some cases, you have to put more of your own blood at risk. >> you're sitting here. what would you do if you're a president or commander in chief or your general for example, and we send in 20 guys, we're going to lose five or ten. the dron
just the tokyo rose type. >> you can have the highest regard with president obama and john brennan. you can realize they're only going to be there for three more years. this is the way warfare is going to be. this is a weapon. this is a flexible, very useful, valuable weapon. >> what's wrong with sticking the judgment of people around obama and not trusting the judgment of the value of people around dick cheney? >> if you give the power to this president, then you can expect...
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>> the president believes that john brennan is uniquely qualified as a 25-year veteran of intelligence work. >> last night the president reportedly spoke with senator widen agreeing to allow access to the classified legal advice. we'll ask the senator directly about his concerns coming up on "morning joe." >>> also confirmation vote on chuck hagel's nomination to be the next secretary of defense has been abruptly postponed. the senate arms services committee says it needs more information about hagel's paid speeches and business dealings. a number of republicans have raised concerns about whether the former senator has accepted payments for consulting work from "foreign sources." hagel insists he's already disclosed all the required information and despite the delay his supporters say they're still confident that he will be confirmed. >>> the man hagel has been tapped to replace is offering a new warning about the threats facing this country in what could be one of the final speeches as defense secretary. leon panetta telling an audience at georgetown university that the u.s. is at ris
>> the president believes that john brennan is uniquely qualified as a 25-year veteran of intelligence work. >> last night the president reportedly spoke with senator widen agreeing to allow access to the classified legal advice. we'll ask the senator directly about his concerns coming up on "morning joe." >>> also confirmation vote on chuck hagel's nomination to be the next secretary of defense has been abruptly postponed. the senate arms services committee says...
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." >> good evening, just a day before the president's chief counter terrorism advisor, john brennan heads to capital hill for his hearing to take over the c.i. averment. the white house has to answer some tough questions about its overseas drone program. the catalyst is a white house memo obtained that justifies american citizens. civil liberties advocates and senator ron widen tweeted today every american has the right to know that their government believes they're allowed to kill them. most americans seem to casually accept this. david corn is washington bureau chief for mother jones. both are msnbc political analysts. jebtle men, let's look here at carney. there was a briefing today and carney defended the president's position on drones. >> i won't talk about specific instances, but the fact is the methods that we use are designed specifically to avoid civilian casualties. i think it's fair to say that far fewer civilians lose their lives in an effort to go after senior leadership as opposed to an effort to lead a country with hundreds of thou sants of troops. >> why are you dancing ar
." >> good evening, just a day before the president's chief counter terrorism advisor, john brennan heads to capital hill for his hearing to take over the c.i. averment. the white house has to answer some tough questions about its overseas drone program. the catalyst is a white house memo obtained that justifies american citizens. civil liberties advocates and senator ron widen tweeted today every american has the right to know that their government believes they're allowed to kill...
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what do we make of brennan? does he take this stuff seriously and as nice over it or does he seem cowboyish in the way he keeps wanting to do all these things outside the bounds of the law? >> in this town, it's hard to believe anybody. i remember president obama in 2009 signing the order and staying i'm going to close guantanamo and it's still open. actions speak louder than yours. i was shocked when he was asked if waterboarding was torture and he said i'm not a lawyer, i can't make that kind of decision, yet if confirmed he'll have the power to decide whether someone is killed or not. another fallacy with this program, the cia is not part of that organization, there's no international authority that says a civilian agency can go over seas and kill people. >> cenk: map we have gone down this rabbit hole and we're in big trouble and it doesn't appear that anybody's doing a damn thing about it. colonel davis if you'd stick around for one more segment, i want to bring in -- >> sure. >> cenk: great i want to bring
what do we make of brennan? does he take this stuff seriously and as nice over it or does he seem cowboyish in the way he keeps wanting to do all these things outside the bounds of the law? >> in this town, it's hard to believe anybody. i remember president obama in 2009 signing the order and staying i'm going to close guantanamo and it's still open. actions speak louder than yours. i was shocked when he was asked if waterboarding was torture and he said i'm not a lawyer, i can't make...
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>> jennifer: i'm jennifer granholm, and tonight on what is my final edition of the war room john brennan went to his c.i.a. confirmation hearing and a fight over drones broke out. [ ♪ music ♪ ] >> jennifer: today john brennan took his seat before congress for his confirmation hearing for c.i.a. director. but what was under scrutiny was the obama administration broken program. it has drown criticism mostly from the left for not being more transparent. the criticism intensified after a memo was leaked talking about americans thought to have ties to al-qaeda through drones. and the left on left tension was on full display. here is brennan attempting to deliver his statement. >> i'm honored to appear before you today at the president's nominee to-- >> would you halt please. we'll ask the police to please remove this woman. >> jennifer: and that happened again and again and again four times he was interrupted until senator feinstein finally had to clear the room. >> okay, we're going to halt the hearing. i'm going to ask that the room be cleared and associates not allowed back in. we've d
>> jennifer: i'm jennifer granholm, and tonight on what is my final edition of the war room john brennan went to his c.i.a. confirmation hearing and a fight over drones broke out. [ ♪ music ♪ ] >> jennifer: today john brennan took his seat before congress for his confirmation hearing for c.i.a. director. but what was under scrutiny was the obama administration broken program. it has drown criticism mostly from the left for not being more transparent. the criticism intensified...
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john brennan strongly defended the program of which he's been called the chief architect. >> i think there is a misimpression on the part of some american people who believe that we take strikes to punish terrorists for past transgressions. nothing could be further from the truth. we only take such actions as a last resort to save lives when there's no other alternative to taking an action that's going to mitigate that threat. so we need to make sure there's an understanding, and the people that were standing up here today, i think they really have a misunderstanding of what we do as a government and the care that we take and the agony that we go through to make sure that we do not have any collateral injuries or deaths. >> well, brennan's testimony had been interrupted there you see by code pink five times, by anti-war protesters called code pink. they're upset about the drones. polls show for the most part those protesters out there, and they're legitimate, represent a small minority of the country. most americans back using drones to carry out targeted assassinations. and while se
john brennan strongly defended the program of which he's been called the chief architect. >> i think there is a misimpression on the part of some american people who believe that we take strikes to punish terrorists for past transgressions. nothing could be further from the truth. we only take such actions as a last resort to save lives when there's no other alternative to taking an action that's going to mitigate that threat. so we need to make sure there's an understanding, and the...
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brennan and how far down does it go? to a general? to a colonel? and there is no due process here whatsoever. and i'm curious. robert greenwald, your thoughts. why wasn't this memo released to the public by the obama administration? >> the obama administration is doing everything in its power to keep every single aspect of this disastrous and horrific policy of assassinating people in other countries. they're doing everything they can to keep it hidden. >> assassinating? you're saying -- you're saying assassinations are taking place? is that what you call it? >> yes, that's what i'm calling it. with people around the world who have not been tried by a jury, there has been no evidence against them, and we are guessing, remember this, we are guessing this and accusing them of things that we have absolutely no firm evidence about. i was in pakistan. i spent a lot of time talking to people, ed. we've talked about this. it's heartbreaking on a moral level, and it's absolutely disastrous on a security level. >> i'm surprised that there are veteran senato
brennan and how far down does it go? to a general? to a colonel? and there is no due process here whatsoever. and i'm curious. robert greenwald, your thoughts. why wasn't this memo released to the public by the obama administration? >> the obama administration is doing everything in its power to keep every single aspect of this disastrous and horrific policy of assassinating people in other countries. they're doing everything they can to keep it hidden. >> assassinating? you're...
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john brennan was once the deputy cia director. he is now president obama's counterterrorism director at the white house. but if he is to run the cia for president obama, john brennan is first going to have to face questions on thursday about some of what michael isikoff turned up here on this program last night. a justice department white paper elaborating the administration's reasoning for why it thinks it is legal to kill american citizens on the president's say so. or actually, on the say so of an informed high level official of the u.s. government. so maybe that's the president, but maybe that's somebody else. michael isikoff's scoop ended up at "the new york times" today and "the washington post" and "the hill" and slate and salon and ap to name a few. it was everywhere. and then at a press conference today, the attorney general was asked about it. >> last night nbc reported a white paper that was prepared by the justice department undated, unsigned about the legal -- the legal pinnacles for targeting americans overseas. coul
john brennan was once the deputy cia director. he is now president obama's counterterrorism director at the white house. but if he is to run the cia for president obama, john brennan is first going to have to face questions on thursday about some of what michael isikoff turned up here on this program last night. a justice department white paper elaborating the administration's reasoning for why it thinks it is legal to kill american citizens on the president's say so. or actually, on the say so...
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do you think brennan will be confirmed? >> it was a good hearing for brennan. i'm sure he's satisfied with what happened. i have confidence after another session next week in class fight setting, he will be confirmed by the senate. >> john: p.j. crowley is professor at george washington university and former secretary of state for public affairs for president obama as well as national security affairs to president clinton. p.j., many thanks. >> pleasure, john. >> john: have a great evening. joining me via skype, one of the foremost critics of the not so secret drone program glenn greenwald, columnist are in the british newspaper the guardian and author of with liberty and justice for some, how the law is used to protect the powerful. what a pleasure to have you with us. >> thank you. thanks for having me. >> john: today was a pretty busy day. senator feinstein told the committee according to the information she has from the white house which she said the committee's trying to confirm civilian casualties from drone strikes are in single digits each year. what do
do you think brennan will be confirmed? >> it was a good hearing for brennan. i'm sure he's satisfied with what happened. i have confidence after another session next week in class fight setting, he will be confirmed by the senate. >> john: p.j. crowley is professor at george washington university and former secretary of state for public affairs for president obama as well as national security affairs to president clinton. p.j., many thanks. >> pleasure, john. >> john:...
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all right, i've got to get on to brennan. all right, so brennan the architect of the drones, blowing people up all over the world. >> 700% increase-- 700% increase from george bush. >> bill: as we pointed out a hypocrisy how the media covers it, hysterical over the waterboarding, but nothing about drones strikes, but now-- i believe that the cia is doing what they should do to eliminate these al-qaeda people and protect not only american civilians, but the armed forces so we don't have to send seals in, send these in and blow these guys up. >> bill, well, we've had people like stanley mcchrystal, former general mcchrystal, the problem using the drone strikes to the extent, 300 plus now, is that they actually cause an enormous amount of, you know, people are resentful overseas because of the collateral damage and obviously, there is collateral damage during war time and people know that. for obama, i'm going to get rid of gitmo, get rid of gitmo and outstretch our hand and you're going to unclench your fist and the world is a
all right, i've got to get on to brennan. all right, so brennan the architect of the drones, blowing people up all over the world. >> 700% increase-- 700% increase from george bush. >> bill: as we pointed out a hypocrisy how the media covers it, hysterical over the waterboarding, but nothing about drones strikes, but now-- i believe that the cia is doing what they should do to eliminate these al-qaeda people and protect not only american civilians, but the armed forces so we don't...
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we may see on thursday how many of those questions john brennan will answer. but tonight, four days ahead of that hearing, nbc news, michael isikoff has obtained a document that is closer than we have ever gotten that supposedly justifies this, the memo that may show the justification for the american government killing american citizens. tonight we have exclusive reporting. joining us is national investigative correspondent michael isikoff. michael, thank you for being here. >> good to be with you, rachel. >> everybody has been looking for this memo. you have not the memo, but a white paper based on the memo. does it tell us anything that we did not know before about how the government justifies targeted killings of americans? >> yes. in short, it does. it provides detail. it fleshes out some of the arguments that have been made publicly, and in ways that in some instances contrast with what has been said publicly. now, to be fair, attorney general holder gave a speech last march where he laid out the administration case for targeted killing of americans. he
we may see on thursday how many of those questions john brennan will answer. but tonight, four days ahead of that hearing, nbc news, michael isikoff has obtained a document that is closer than we have ever gotten that supposedly justifies this, the memo that may show the justification for the american government killing american citizens. tonight we have exclusive reporting. joining us is national investigative correspondent michael isikoff. michael, thank you for being here. >> good to...
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brennan, what about 15, 14, 11, 9? the law cares a great deal about consent and meaningful participation. contrary to what we have in the public debate and polling which shows, yes, in general you can do it. but when you get into american children off the battlefield as conventionally defined, i think you're in tough territory and i think brennan was wrong on that. >> well, this effort -- i don't even want to call it a war -- this effort has been off the battlefield since september 11th. >> what do we call a battlefield now? >> this i think is a very serious problem. i don't think it's a question that can be answered. these are all great questions. here's what i don't see. i don't see how, under the way business is done now and how it's always been done, i don't see how any of the questions can publicly addressed. the amount of intelligence that they would have to open up and hand over to you to answer any of the questions you asked would presumably compromise everything that they were trying to do. >> i have a slight
brennan, what about 15, 14, 11, 9? the law cares a great deal about consent and meaningful participation. contrary to what we have in the public debate and polling which shows, yes, in general you can do it. but when you get into american children off the battlefield as conventionally defined, i think you're in tough territory and i think brennan was wrong on that. >> well, this effort -- i don't even want to call it a war -- this effort has been off the battlefield since september 11th....
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will counter terrorism advisor john brennan become the head of the cia. he testifies tomorrow on capitol hill. some liberals don't like him because he is the director of the drone program that kills terrorists from the sky. president obama very bullish on the drones. >> the strikes are legal. they are ethical and they are wise. the u.s.a. government takes great care in deciding to pursue an al qaeda terrorist to ensure precision and avoid loss of innocent life. >> bill: here now to discuss his moral dilemma over the drone issue, the co-host of the five bob beckel. all right. so, first of all, would you make brennan the head of the cia? >> not with that policy, no. until that policy was changed, i would hold him up. >> bill: he is the architect of the policy. >> that's a good reason. >> bill: you won't vote for him. >> i wouldn't vote for him unless that policy changed. talking about going after american citizens who yes are associated with terrorist groups i understand that no evidence they are doing anything about an imminent threat to the united states.
will counter terrorism advisor john brennan become the head of the cia. he testifies tomorrow on capitol hill. some liberals don't like him because he is the director of the drone program that kills terrorists from the sky. president obama very bullish on the drones. >> the strikes are legal. they are ethical and they are wise. the u.s.a. government takes great care in deciding to pursue an al qaeda terrorist to ensure precision and avoid loss of innocent life. >> bill: here now to...
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john brennan the president's pick going on the hot seat. the hearing promising to be the most public, probably the most telling of the administration's use of drones to kill americans overseas suspected of working with al qaeda. senator richard blumenthal will be here. and then we talk about new jersey governor chris clity defending his grirth and calls a former white house doctor a hack after she voices concern about his fitness telling her to shut up. should weight matter in presidential politics? >>> and then who is afraid of ashley judd in karl rove is. his late he is attack ad on the popular actress, will it goad her into rubbing for mitch mcconnell's senate seat? ing to ♪ [ male announcer ] introducing the celebration diamond collection. zales is the diamond store. let love shine. or treat gas with these after you get it. now that's like sunblock before or sun burn cream later. oh, somebody out there's saying, now i get it! take beano before and there'll be no gas. take beano before did you just turn your ringer off so no one would
john brennan the president's pick going on the hot seat. the hearing promising to be the most public, probably the most telling of the administration's use of drones to kill americans overseas suspected of working with al qaeda. senator richard blumenthal will be here. and then we talk about new jersey governor chris clity defending his grirth and calls a former white house doctor a hack after she voices concern about his fitness telling her to shut up. should weight matter in presidential...
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brennan? >> not completely obviously saying sometimes it produces information and sometimes it isn't -- >> not enough to derail this nomination. >> i don't think so. i think brennan probably compared with hagel is going to be a breeze to get through, but these are issues and this is what this testimony actually illustrates, that really tug at the heartstrings of americans. we have had a traumatic decade. we have come away questioning tactics of torture, the use of guantanamo bay. the legal justification not fully understood. the drone issue still not fully explained because it's so secret. there's still a lot the american public is struggling to understand. >> dan, one reaction that i have relative to the whole standard of when we could take out even an american is, you know, be careful before you make your decision based on the occupant of the white house because precedent is being set here, and whatever the drill might be for today could apply to president clinton in 2016. it could apply to
brennan? >> not completely obviously saying sometimes it produces information and sometimes it isn't -- >> not enough to derail this nomination. >> i don't think so. i think brennan probably compared with hagel is going to be a breeze to get through, but these are issues and this is what this testimony actually illustrates, that really tug at the heartstrings of americans. we have had a traumatic decade. we have come away questioning tactics of torture, the use of guantanamo...
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that question was at the heart of today's confirmation hearings for john brennan to run the c.i.a. it's an emotional issue revolving around the use of drones to kill those the government deems threats to our security. >> pr testers made their voices heard. >> we'll ask the police to please remove this woman. please remoouf
that question was at the heart of today's confirmation hearings for john brennan to run the c.i.a. it's an emotional issue revolving around the use of drones to kill those the government deems threats to our security. >> pr testers made their voices heard. >> we'll ask the police to please remove this woman. please remoouf
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that question was at the heart of today's confirmation hearings for john brennan to run the c.i.a. it's an emotional issue revolving around the use of drones to kill those the government deems threats to our security. >> pr testers made their voices heard. >> we'll ask the police to please remove this woman. please remoove. >>> we are killing children. senator finestein -- >> if you could please expedite the removal. >>. >> the hearing had to be adjourned while the room was freed of protesters. i've always been very weary of the use of drones, no matter if it's under a republican president or a democrat. transparency is important here and president obama releasing some records is a positive first step. but there's going to be a president after president obama. and who knows how that leader will handle these serious matters. there must be consistency from one administration to the next. even though i trust president obama. if we set a president now, are we going to live with that if the next president is someone we don't agree with? no matter the politics, that's the question we sho
that question was at the heart of today's confirmation hearings for john brennan to run the c.i.a. it's an emotional issue revolving around the use of drones to kill those the government deems threats to our security. >> pr testers made their voices heard. >> we'll ask the police to please remove this woman. please remoove. >>> we are killing children. senator finestein -- >> if you could please expedite the removal. >>. >> the hearing had to be adjourned...
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brennan? >> reporter: well, talking to folks, the democrats here in d.c., there is a lot of confidence in brennan's performance because it's the complete opposite of hagel. they felt brennan looked self-assured. he gave a spirited defense to the administration's policies and most importantly he was also humble. he said there should be more information put forward in terms of when these drone strikes occur if civilians are injured. this hearing for mr. brennan also sort of placated a lot of democrats on that committee because the white house released papers from the department of justice explaining the legal rationale behind the drone strikes. so overall, the feel something that john brennan performed admirably, that he will move forward and he will be a good director of the cia. they felt that the committee hearing went as well as it could be. what's interesting, martin, john brennan has 25 years experience at the cia and that's really what we've heard. he's the most experienced person to take
brennan? >> reporter: well, talking to folks, the democrats here in d.c., there is a lot of confidence in brennan's performance because it's the complete opposite of hagel. they felt brennan looked self-assured. he gave a spirited defense to the administration's policies and most importantly he was also humble. he said there should be more information put forward in terms of when these drone strikes occur if civilians are injured. this hearing for mr. brennan also sort of placated a lot...
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brennan's defense of the secrecy surrounding the administration's most questionable program, targeted assassinations using drone aircraft, was as opaque as the program itself. >> what we need to do is optimize transparency on these issues, but at the same time optimize secrecy and the protection of our national security. i don't think that it's one or the other. it's trying to optimize both of them. >> some senators, including ron widen and angus king, pushed brennan to explain the legal at and justification for assassinating american citizens abroad. >> every american has the right to know when their government believes it's allowed to kill them. >> i understand you can't have co-commanders in chief, but having the executive being the prosecutor, the judge, the jury, and the executioner all in one is very contrary to traditions and the laws of this country. >> brennan argued essentially that the ends justify the means. >> the decision that is are made are to take actions so that we prevent a future action so we protect american lives. that is an inherently executive branch function t
brennan's defense of the secrecy surrounding the administration's most questionable program, targeted assassinations using drone aircraft, was as opaque as the program itself. >> what we need to do is optimize transparency on these issues, but at the same time optimize secrecy and the protection of our national security. i don't think that it's one or the other. it's trying to optimize both of them. >> some senators, including ron widen and angus king, pushed brennan to explain the...